Vegetarian shoes do a trainer which is very light, and reminded me of the leather shoes you can get for martial arts. They are a very snug fit, and keep fastened well, so shouldn't fly off when you are kicking!
I can't remeber the name of the shoe, but it has a great big 'V' on it, and come in a load of colours.

Alternatively, you could use a kung-fu slipper, but they are slippy and don't have a fastener, so your opponent may end up with a slipper in his gob!

The shoes lardyvegan mentioned could be OK but there is a chance they might be too heavy for taekwondo. As for Billy's question the Kung Fu slippers would be ideal for tai chi and cheap too! The vegetarian shoes might be OK too and the heavyness wouldn't be an issue because you'd rarely raise your leg higher than chest height.

There is a martial arts shop on Swan Street in Manchester (top of Tib Street and Oldham St) that sell kung Fu slippers. They are about £6 each. They are perfect for Tai Chi. Not much use for anything else.

If anyone is going to the Newchurch Guinea Pig demo tomorrow Mary is picking up a pair of martial arts trainers from someone at the demo (not sure what type) and she can show you them. They cost £20 each.

There are a few shoes on the market for TKD, mainly with some webbing on. However there are some available from Fuji MAE who have recently moved to Luton. These are a nice shoe fully synthetic, I find them a bit to narrow for my feet but others like them (I have got fat feet). Hope this helps.

I recommend practicing bare foot.... shoes, especially vegan shoes, tend to disrupt the flow of chi from the earth into your feet... rubber soles would act like they do with electricity.. as chi is related... especially practice barefoot if you are outside.

Hazrat wrote:I recommend practicing bare foot.... shoes, especially vegan shoes, tend to disrupt the flow of chi from the earth into your feet... rubber soles would act like they do with electricity.. as chi is related... especially practice barefoot if you are outside.

Peace.

Hey Hazrat I have been wanting to improve my self through chi related exercise, do you have any book recomendations or web links.

Also I agrey which bare foot training as is traditional in Karate, as it allows the golgitendons in your feet to feed your brain spacial information which improves your bodys awareness of were it is in space, which improves your balance. But when on the street a pair of thin martial arts shoes gives a level of confidence to the wearer.

I prefer to practice tai chi wearing shoes, at least in the gym (home is another matter). I've just found that Shoe Express (cheapo shoe chain store in the UK) do a cheap variety of those thin sole trainers that are in fashion at the mo. They are excellent for tai chi, and useful for weightlifting as well, if you want to train wearing trainers without thick, bouncy soles. And off course it's important to look ever so fashionable in the gym!

I wouldn't say that chi in affected by the wearing of flat shoes, unless you are wearing something like a Doc Martin with ressitant soles. The main problem as far as taichi goes is that you loose sensitivity in the feet. This is particualy important when stepping, as you should feel the skin of your foot touching the floor before the bone does. However depending where you live shoes may well be needed.

Sorry I never got to finnish my post, my computer keeps shutting down on me.

I was going to say that it depends where you live as you might find alot of inner city(and country) areas may well have broken glass or needles on the floor, not to mention dog shit... Many people write alot of things and it is always worth remembering that even if people give themselves titles all they offer is their own opinion. We all have to make up our own minds about what we are happy doing and what feels right to us.

As I have stated in earlier postings I always recommend people train in barefeet, but sometimes it's just to cold in the winter.

Our sifu teaches while wearing flat soled shoes. Seems like he's doing well on it. I just feel more comfortable wearing shoes, so in that way I reckon wearing shoes is more beneficial to my learning tai chi, as I can concentrate on the form rather than anything else.

I practise martial arts in tai chi shoes when we are studying in the smaller dojo with the tap dance floor, because I broke my left foot as a kid, and three or four toes on either side. It starts to hurt like hell if I don't wear the shoes, and the ones Steve mentioned are just right for me, as they are light, and have good arch support - particularly good for my left foot.

When I am training in the larger dojo with the padded floor, and when I train on grass I practise in the bare feet, because I do think that you learn more subtlety of movement by practising unshod. I also believe in chi, though it is hard to explain what I mean by it. At the risk of sounding clinically insane I will only say that it is like a mild current that flows through you. I don't pretend to know what it is, and I only feel it when practising the chi gung moves, my katas at a super slow motion, or while meditating. For all I know it is just blood moving through me. I don't think that is what it is, but I don't tend to describe it very well, because basically a lot of people would laugh at your attempts to wax mystical. Just, I do know what Hazrat means about it seeming to move better when you are in the bare feet. On the other hand if being barefoot makes it hard to concentrate on learning tai chi then there is no point in doing it that way. The movements themselves (and I don't know because I am not a sifu, expert, or anyone other than a very interested observer since my lessons stopped) presumably help to generate chi. I feel it in my hands first anyway, regardless of whether or not I am wearing shoes. This may just be the capilliaries opening as I relax - again, I haven't a clue.

This whole thread has made me really miss my classes! When are you doing your teaching tour Steve? Pretty please?